It was a “Pitcher’s Duel” Sunday afternoon at Dodger Stadium as Dodgers Emmet Sheehan and Giants Trevor McDonald were keeping the game scoreless for the first six innings of the ball game. In another of the storied rivalry that dates back to the 1800’s, neither team was willing to give an inch.

But it was the Giants who were first to go to the bullpen for relief. After 89 pitches Trevor McDonald was removed. Coming out of the bullpen to start the seventh inning was right hander Spencer Bivens who walked the first batter he faced in Max Muncy. The very next batter, Andy Pages, singled to right field moving Muncy to second. Michael Conforto followed with an RBI single to left field that scored Muncy. Miguel Rojas then put down a perfect sacrifice but that moved Pages and Conforto to third and second respectively. In a pinch-hitting role, Tommy Edman laced a low liner down the first base line that had run scoring double written all over it. But when Giant first baseman Bryce Eldridge made a fantastic snag of the scorching line drive and then doubled up Pages at third base, the Giants averted near disaster, getting out of the inning only giving up a single run.

With the Dodgers up 1-0, Sheehan, who was pitching a gem, had the ball taken out of his hands. After seven innings Emmett struck out ten batters, only gave up one hit and did not allow a run. On the day Sheehan threw 84 pitches of which 58 were strikes. He did not walk a batter.

When asked about his recent success on the hill Sheehan shared, “It just goes back to the gameplan and trying to keep them off balance, and Rushing called a good game back there, (behind the plate), too. It’s nice to feel this good, we want to continue with the progress we are making. It’s definitely nice to get a couple of good ones in before the playoffs.”

Coming out of the pen was the struggling Blake Trienen who was still looking for the form that he displayed during the Dodgers World Series runs in 2020 and 2024. To put it bluntly, Blake did not find it.

Allowing back-to-back singles to Christian Koss and Drew Gilbert and then giving up a double to pinch hitter Patrick Bailey, Treinen let the Giants even things up before collecting an out. After finally collecting an out, Rafael Devers was intentionally walked which loaded the bases. The next batter, Willie Adames was walked, which pushed across a run that gave the Giants the lead. Needless to say, Dodger fans were livid. They wouldn’t be any happier when a grounder to the shortstop pushed another run giving San Francisco a 3-1 lead. Alex Vesia was brought in to stop the bleeding, but the damage was done, and once again the Dodger bullpen had erased another fine performance by one of their Ace starting pitchers. That has become a common theme in “Dodger Town” that will need to be corrected if they plan to make a legitimate run in the playoffs.

“I’ve got to trust what I’m seeing and not solely bet on the person or track record,” Roberts said of Treinen. “We all need to see a couple good outings but most importantly, I want to see his confidence up. And to be quite honest, I think that right now he’s just not as confident in himself as I am in him. The main thing is that we got to get that confidence back.”

The Giants held off the Dodgers in the bottom of the eight and ninth innings and averted getting swept in Los Angeles. Giant Reliever Bivens picked up the nod for San Francisco keeping their slim playoff hopes on life support.

Meanwhile Treinen was dealt the loss which puts his record at a dismal 1-7 for the year. The Dodgers, who already clinched a playoff spot, still have their Magic Number at three to win the National League West crown.

“Our head right now, to be honest, is on winning this division and going forward,” Roberts said. “I just want to win the division and get to the postseason.”

‘Frisco will head home for the final week of the season while Los Angles will head to Arizona and Seattle to close out their regular season.

By William Trillo